Routledge Focus on Asia – serie

With the advent of the second Abe administration, the question of ‘who leads’ in Japan has become much easier to answer - the Prime Minister and his executive office, backed by a substantial policy support apparatus. This rise of the ‘prime ministerial executive’ is therefore one of the most important structural changes in Japan’s political system in the post-war period.This book explains how the prime ministerial executive operates under the Abe administration and how it is contributing to Abe’s unprecedented policymaking authority. It analyses how reform of central government under Prime Ministers Nakasone, Hashimoto and Koizumi has produced the necessary institutional innovations to allow the prime minister to assert a more authoritative policy leadership, turning Japan’s traditional, decentralised and bottom-up politics on its head. Comparing the Westminster and presidential systems of governance and applying them to Japan’s contemporary politics, the book shows that whilst elements of both can be found, neither captures the essence of the transformation involved in the rise of the prime ministerial executive. Providing a thorough analysis of power in Japanese politics, this book will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese Politics, Comparative Politics and Asian Studies.

Heritage tourism is a global multi-million-dollar phenomenon, influencing national, regional and local cultural identities. Hong Kong finds itself at the confluence of several post-colonial economic, political and social developments and with this comes a greater awareness of the need for more meaningful cultural and heritage tourism products, especially in the form of revitalised heritage attractions. Taking a qualitative approach and using semi-structured in-depth interviews with practitioners and stakeholders in the field, this study explores the role of interpretation in heritage revitalisation projects for tourism in Hong Kong. It seeks to examine why the interpretive element of these projects so often gets diminished during the course of implementation and outlines five propositions that may inform it going forward. Ultimately, the findings of this study suggest that, as issues of local identity become ever more important in Hong Kong, the role of interpretation in the development of its heritage tourism products needs to be holistic, integrated and consistent across public, private and non-governmental sectors.Developing a framework of understanding to identify the contextual issues of interpretation and commodification, this book will be useful to students and scholars of tourism, heritage studies and Asian studies more generally.

This book situates the 2020 Tokyo Olympics within the social, economic, and political challenges facing contemporary Japan. Using the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as a lens into the city and the country as a whole, the stellar line up of contributors offer hidden insights and new perspectives on the Games. These include city planning, cultural politics, financial issues, language use, security, education, volunteerism, and construction work. The chapters then go on to explore the many stakeholders, institutions, citizens, interest groups, and protest groups involved, and feature the struggle over Tokyo’s extreme summer heat, food standards, the implementation of diversity around disabilities, sexual minorities, and technological innovations. Giving short glimpses into the new Olympic sports, this book also analyses the role of these sports in Japanese society.Japan Through the Lens of the Tokyo Olympics will be of huge interest to anyone attending the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020. It will also be useful to students and scholars of the Olympics and the sociology of sport, as well as Japanese culture and society.

This book situates the 2020 Tokyo Olympics within the social, economic, and political challenges facing contemporary Japan. Using the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as a lens into the city and the country as a whole, the stellar line up of contributors offer hidden insights and new perspectives on the Games. These include city planning, cultural politics, financial issues, language use, security, education, volunteerism, and construction work. The chapters then go on to explore the many stakeholders, institutions, citizens, interest groups, and protest groups involved, and feature the struggle over Tokyo’s extreme summer heat, food standards, the implementation of diversity around disabilities, sexual minorities, and technological innovations. Giving short glimpses into the new Olympic sports, this book also analyses the role of these sports in Japanese society.Japan Through the Lens of the Tokyo Olympics will be of huge interest to anyone attending the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020. It will also be useful to students and scholars of the Olympics and the sociology of sport, as well as Japanese culture and society.

Prisons and Forced Labour in Japan examines the local, national and international significance of convict labour during the colonization of Hokkaido between 1881 and 1894 and the building of the Japanese empire. Based on the analysis of archival sources such as prison yearbooks and letters, as well as other eyewitness accounts, this book uses a framework of global prison studies to trace the historical origins of prisons and forced labour in early modern Japan. It explores the institutionalization of convict labour on Hokkaido against the backdrop of political uprisings during the Meiji period. In so doing, it argues that although Japan tried to implement Western ideas of the prison as a total institution, the concrete reality of the prison differed from theoretical concepts. In particular, the boundaries between prisons and their environment were not clearly marked during the colonization of Hokkaido.This book provides an important contribution to the historiography of Meiji Japan and Hokkaido and to the global study of prisons and forced labour in general. As such, it will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese, Asian and labour history.

Focusing on Disney’s production of Shanghai Disneyland, this book examines how the Chinese state and the local market influence Disney’s ownership and production of the identities and the representations of Shanghai Disneyland. Qualitative methods are here applied to combine both primary and secondary data, including document analysis, participant observation, and in-depth interviews.Shanghai Disneyland is purposely created to be different from the other Disneylands, under the “authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese” mandate. In order to survive and thrive in China, Disney carefully constructs Shanghai Disneyland as Disneyland with Chinese characteristics. Previous studies tend to link Disney with cultural imperialism; however, this book argues that it is not imperialism but glocalization that promotes a global company’s interests in China. In particular, the findings suggest state-capital-led glocalization: glocalization led by economic capital of the state (direct investment) and economic capital with the state (market potential). Furthermore, the four categories of glocalization with different conditions, considerations, and consequences illustrate various global–local dynamics in the process of a global formation of locality.The Glocalization of Shanghai Disneyland will appeal to students and scholars of sociology, communication studies, business studies, and Asian studies more broadly.

Focusing on Disney’s production of Shanghai Disneyland, this book examines how the Chinese state and the local market influence Disney’s ownership and production of the identities and the representations of Shanghai Disneyland. Qualitative methods are here applied to combine both primary and secondary data, including document analysis, participant observation, and in-depth interviews.Shanghai Disneyland is purposely created to be different from the other Disneylands, under the “authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese” mandate. In order to survive and thrive in China, Disney carefully constructs Shanghai Disneyland as Disneyland with Chinese characteristics. Previous studies tend to link Disney with cultural imperialism; however, this book argues that it is not imperialism but glocalization that promotes a global company’s interests in China. In particular, the findings suggest state-capital-led glocalization: glocalization led by economic capital of the state (direct investment) and economic capital with the state (market potential). Furthermore, the four categories of glocalization with different conditions, considerations, and consequences illustrate various global–local dynamics in the process of a global formation of locality.The Glocalization of Shanghai Disneyland will appeal to students and scholars of sociology, communication studies, business studies, and Asian studies more broadly.

This book explores the nature of the state-citizen societal relationship in Korea during the transition to neoliberalism, through the lenses of class and nationalism. Examining the process by which a new class, Korean Chinese entrepreneurs, emerged from Korean Chinese enclaves in South Korea and quickly became a leading group within those communities, this book provides a case study of the entrepreneurs running a variety of businesses, including restaurants, travel agencies and trading companies. Whilst Korean Chinese people faced discrimination and stigmatization in Korea, despite their economic contributions to the economy, this book demonstrates how entrepreneurs began to form associations and organisations, campaigning for their equal status in Korean society. Arguing that the formation of these was closely linked to the framework of legal statuses established by the Korean state as it sought to make use of Korean Chinese labour, this book explains how social citizenship was constituted by the interaction between their situational sense of fairness and the contradictory economic and social roles expected of them by the state.Drawing on fifteen years of ethnographical experience, Chaoxianzu Entrepreneurs in Korea will be useful to students and scholars of sociology, anthropology, Migration Studies and Ethnic Studies, as well as Korean Studies.

Prisons and Forced Labour in Japan examines the local, national and international significance of convict labour during the colonization of Hokkaido between 1881 and 1894 and the building of the Japanese empire. Based on the analysis of archival sources such as prison yearbooks and letters, as well as other eyewitness accounts, this book uses a framework of global prison studies to trace the historical origins of prisons and forced labour in early modern Japan. It explores the institutionalization of convict labour on Hokkaido against the backdrop of political uprisings during the Meiji period. In so doing, it argues that although Japan tried to implement Western ideas of the prison as a total institution, the concrete reality of the prison differed from theoretical concepts. In particular, the boundaries between prisons and their environment were not clearly marked during the colonization of Hokkaido.This book provides an important contribution to the historiography of Meiji Japan and Hokkaido and to the global study of prisons and forced labour in general. As such, it will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese, Asian and labour history.

This book examines the phenomenon of war-related contents tourism throughout Japanese history, from conflicts described in ancient Japanese myth through to contemporary depictions of fantasy and futuristic warfare.It tackles two crucial questions: first, how does war transition from being traumatic to entertaining in the public imagination and works of popular culture; and second, how does visitation to war-related sites transition from being an act of mourning or commemorative pilgrimage into an act of devotion or fan pilgrimage? Representing the collaboration of ten expert researchers of Japanese popular culture and travel, it develops a theoretical framework for understanding war-related contents tourism and demonstrates the framework in practice via numerous short case studies across a millennium of warfare in Japan including: the tales of heroic deities in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters, AD 712), the Edo poetry of Matsuo Basho, and the Pacific war through lens of popular media such as the animated film Grave of the Fireflies.This book will be of interest to researchers and students in tourism studies and cultural studies, as well as more general issues of war and peace in Japan, East Asia and beyond.

This book examines the phenomenon of war-related contents tourism throughout Japanese history, from conflicts described in ancient Japanese myth through to contemporary depictions of fantasy and futuristic warfare.It tackles two crucial questions: first, how does war transition from being traumatic to entertaining in the public imagination and works of popular culture; and second, how does visitation to war-related sites transition from being an act of mourning or commemorative pilgrimage into an act of devotion or fan pilgrimage? Representing the collaboration of ten expert researchers of Japanese popular culture and travel, it develops a theoretical framework for understanding war-related contents tourism and demonstrates the framework in practice via numerous short case studies across a millennium of warfare in Japan including: the tales of heroic deities in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters, AD 712), the Edo poetry of Matsuo Basho, and the Pacific war through lens of popular media such as the animated film Grave of the Fireflies.This book will be of interest to researchers and students in tourism studies and cultural studies, as well as more general issues of war and peace in Japan, East Asia and beyond.

This book explores the nature of the state-citizen societal relationship in Korea during the transition to neoliberalism, through the lenses of class and nationalism. Examining the process by which a new class, Korean Chinese entrepreneurs, emerged from Korean Chinese enclaves in South Korea and quickly became a leading group within those communities, this book provides a case study of the entrepreneurs running a variety of businesses, including restaurants, travel agencies and trading companies. Whilst Korean Chinese people faced discrimination and stigmatization in Korea, despite their economic contributions to the economy, this book demonstrates how entrepreneurs began to form associations and organisations, campaigning for their equal status in Korean society. Arguing that the formation of these was closely linked to the framework of legal statuses established by the Korean state as it sought to make use of Korean Chinese labour, this book explains how social citizenship was constituted by the interaction between their situational sense of fairness and the contradictory economic and social roles expected of them by the state.Drawing on fifteen years of ethnographical experience, Chaoxianzu Entrepreneurs in Korea will be useful to students and scholars of sociology, anthropology, Migration Studies and Ethnic Studies, as well as Korean Studies.

This book examines the independent media movements by Inmediahk and Coolloud – long-established, autonomous media organizations that have agitated for the development of media freedom and human rights in Hong Kong and Taiwan since 2004 and 1997, respectively. Based on direct interviews with the founders and core members of Inmediahk and Coolloud, the author investigates the origins, growth, and achievements of Inmediahk and Coolloud's media social movements as well as the current challenges the two independent media outlets encounter with regard to funding, increasing socio-political pressure, and the complicated media environments in Hong Kong and Taiwan using the method of qualitative content interpretation. Moreover, the practicality of social media and independent media in contemporary social movements, including the 2019 Anti-Extradition Bill Movement in Hong Kong, is reviewed according to text analysis. Considering the prospect of media activism from a non-western perspective, this book will appeal not only to scholars and researchers with interests in media, social movement, and cultural studies, but also to media workers and activists across the globe.

This book examines the independent media movements by Inmediahk and Coolloud – long-established, autonomous media organizations that have agitated for the development of media freedom and human rights in Hong Kong and Taiwan since 2004 and 1997, respectively. Based on direct interviews with the founders and core members of Inmediahk and Coolloud, the author investigates the origins, growth, and achievements of Inmediahk and Coolloud's media social movements as well as the current challenges the two independent media outlets encounter with regard to funding, increasing socio-political pressure, and the complicated media environments in Hong Kong and Taiwan using the method of qualitative content interpretation. Moreover, the practicality of social media and independent media in contemporary social movements, including the 2019 Anti-Extradition Bill Movement in Hong Kong, is reviewed according to text analysis. Considering the prospect of media activism from a non-western perspective, this book will appeal not only to scholars and researchers with interests in media, social movement, and cultural studies, but also to media workers and activists across the globe.

Providing an analytical framework through illustrations of real-world practices, this novel and important volume investigates policy analysis in the context of high inequalities in Asia from critical and pragmatic perspectives.Through reflective review, cases, and lessons, this book provides discussions and develops a context-sensitive analytical framework: mapping spaces of deliberation from formal to semi-formal and informal; understanding narratives that travel between policy actors; and staying conscious of inequalities in knowledge and socio-political status. With particular focus on the Asian context, this book addresses intellectual and practical discussions in public policy, political science, public administration, and Asian studies. Chapters provide several illustrations and case studies that examine inclusive participation and its transformative potential in policy analysis in Asian settings. Ultimately, this book argues that despite inequalities and constrained possibilities, policy analysis is still able to affect what is politically and socially imaginable, and to be genuinely sensitive to contextual realities. Given that high inequality is a global phenomenon, the conclusions and findings will be widely applicable.Offering in-depth research and discussion on doing policy analysis in Asia, the book will be relevant to scholars, researchers and postgraduate students in the fields of policy, political science, public administration, and Asian studies more broadly. Graduate students and policymakers may also find this book of use.

With the advent of the second Abe administration, the question of ‘who leads’ in Japan has become much easier to answer - the Prime Minister and his executive office, backed by a substantial policy support apparatus. This rise of the ‘prime ministerial executive’ is therefore one of the most important structural changes in Japan’s political system in the post-war period.This book explains how the prime ministerial executive operates under the Abe administration and how it is contributing to Abe’s unprecedented policymaking authority. It analyses how reform of central government under Prime Ministers Nakasone, Hashimoto and Koizumi has produced the necessary institutional innovations to allow the prime minister to assert a more authoritative policy leadership, turning Japan’s traditional, decentralised and bottom-up politics on its head. Comparing the Westminster and presidential systems of governance and applying them to Japan’s contemporary politics, the book shows that whilst elements of both can be found, neither captures the essence of the transformation involved in the rise of the prime ministerial executive. Providing a thorough analysis of power in Japanese politics, this book will be useful to students and scholars of Japanese Politics, Comparative Politics and Asian Studies.